He’d caught her by surprise when he first kissed her, thoughadmittedly she’d been hoping for it all along. What he’d initiated beganslowly, softly. But then he’d taken charge and transformed it into raw need andhunger, possessing her mouth, his hands on her as though he was pitching astake in her marked “mine.” As though a dam of pent-up desire had just bustedloose inside him.
God help her, she’d loved it. She longed to get swept awayin the flood.
He’d stirred deep, primal urges inside her. And there was nomistaking how it affected him. His arousal, thick and hard, had nestledbetween them when he’d pinned her against the counter.
She hadn’t guessed at the tornado of passion spinning insidehim. He was good at concealing it. But beneath that restrained demeanor and allthose glorious muscles, Tyler Johnson harbored a scorching, slow-burning blazefueled by carefully leashed power she wanted unleashed. On her.
Before the kiss, his eyes had been brimming with heat,roaming over her like he wanted to devour her. And when he kissed her, he hadpractically devoured her—in the very best of ways. But then it came to ascreeching stop, slamming into … the Great Wall of Tyler.
Had she misread the signals?
Yeah, no, because he’d been right there with her, riding atidal wave of lust. But something had reeled him back,shut him down.
Beneath his hunkiness and kissingskills, Tyler Johnson had secrets he kept well-guardedalongside his heart.
Demons and danger lurked in his penetrating golden-greeneyes. He was the black-leather biker, cigarette dangling from his full lips,that every mom warned her daughter about—the guy with an edge. Lethal. Nataliehad never contemplated falling for dangerous or fucked up. Until now.
Throw caution to the wind, Hailey Hormones begged.Girl had a point because, good Lord, Natalie’s knees had yet to stop quivering.She could have locked lips with Tyler for days, foregoing food and water, anddied in his arms. Her family would’ve found her emaciated body entwined withhis, lips forged together.
Another sip of Crown slid down smoothly. She propped barefeet on her kitchen table, smiling at his unexpected admission. I like you.
Yeah, the guy carried baggage so weighty he couldn’ttalk about it, but it lent him a boyish vulnerability that tugged at her. Like a rescue dog. The whole package was growing unnervinglyirresistible. Intrigue compelled her to chip away at his thick crust, searchingout his chinks. Therein lay a paradox. Natalie wasn’t about to “fix” a man,thank you very much, even if he was hotness personified. After all, who was TylerJohnson?
Porn star.
Being a dynamite kisser was probably a requirement for thatjob. Wait. Did they bother kissing in porn flicks? Never mind.
She’d googled “Tyler Johnson” andcome up with an NBA player, an actor, and a pro hockey player only an inchtaller than she was. None of them looked a thing like her Tyler Johnson.
Her?
Spidey-senses tingled, urging herto steer clear, while Drew sounded off in her head. But something about Tylermade her brighten like a warehouse full of ignitedRoman candles when he was around, turning her into a mass of giggles andshivers. No one had ever affected her the way he did, and it was addicting.Just like that kiss.
So when he texted her at midnight, inviting her to lunch dayafter next, she didn’t hesitate.
Yes.
Anticipation made her tummy hop as though a net of ping-pong balls had just been released inside. No sleep forher tonight.
.~* * * ~.
Casey’s Bistro & Pub inStapleton was a casual, comfortable restaurant humming with diners enmeshed inconversation. Bringing Natalie here was a massive gamble, but T.J. had neverbeen here, no one knew him, and he banked on her suppressing her reaction inpublic. Yeah, probably another seriously bad idea that he’dadd to the mountain of other bad ideas.
They sat in a quiet booth. She was opposite him, talkinganimatedly about her growing role at Paige’s. He was happy for her, glad he’d had a hand in it.
Chin cupped in his palm, he studied everything about her asshe enthused. Blood pounding in his ears, his stomach rolling like a log on ariver, he stopped registering what she said. His attention was riveted on herbeautiful, expressive face. He drank her in, memorizing everything about her.God, he would miss looking at her.
As she talked, she tilted her head from side to side, andher gleaming hair swung like a curtain ruffling in the breeze. Her bright eyeswere deep gold today, the flecks of copper and brown so easy to pick out. Hespied a shade he hadn’t noticed before—was that russet?—committingthe color to memory.
The light pink nubby sweater she wore under a matching pinkjacket set off the bronze tone of her flawlessly smooth skin. And though he couldn’tsee them at the moment, blue skinny jeans—highlighting her very fineassets—tucked into brown ankle boots. She’d about knocked the breath from hislungs when she’d bounded out of the house and into his H1.
Insides wound tighter than a garage door torsion spring, afamiliar thought sparked. Maybe he could put this off for another day, anotherweek, after the season was over.
Man the hell up!
They’d placed drink orders, and a server approached with atray holding two pints of beer. Thank God. He had cottonmouth, and he felt as though something clawed his dry throat. The tray slid onto the table, and a womanset their glasses in front of them. In his periphery, she went still.
“T.J.?”
He snapped his eyes up, the hair along his nape standing onend.
His blood froze as he stared into Gillian’s blue eyes. Shelooked as shocked as he felt.
Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!
A white-toothed smile split her face. “It is you!”she squealed, making him flinch. “I tried calling you as soon as I heard theEarthquake traded you to Colorado, but you changed your number. Oh my God, andhere you are at my table!”
Before he could shift his gaze to Natalie, Gillian blockedhis view by leaning over, wrapping her arms around him, and pecking him on thelips. A familiar, cloying scent assaulted his senses.
“I’ve missed you,” she breathed against his ear, then pulledback—just enough to grin at him. “How’ve you been, you sexy man?”
He darted his head, glimpsing Natalie’s confused expression.As he
